Day 1 (4 Jun) We departed London for Venice. We decided to arrive a day prior to boarding the ship to allow for airport/weather delays. The weather was not nice...cool and rainy (but, being from England, we were used to it). I think we would have liked Venice more had the weather been better, but we were excited to explore the town. We took a water taxi from the airport to our hotel, which was approx two blocks from San Marco Square. It was called Hotel Santuria and International--highly recommend it for those visiting Venice.
Here is the famous Rialto Bridge.
We ate at a quaint resturaunt overlooking the Grand Canal and Rialto bridge. We were going to do a gondola ride after dinner, but then it started to rain quite a bit and decided to abort that plan. Here is a pic of a canal with the gondolas. They charge about $250 for a 1 1/2 hour ride. Instead we decided to shop for a souvenir from Venice...a mask.
Day 2 (5 Jun) We awoke early to try to attend morning mass at St. Marks Basilica, but got delayed due to a torrential downpour and were unable to attend. We were able to sit in a side chapel and hear the mass...in Italian...and, see the inside of the Basilica. Here is a pic of Aaron (umbrella in hand) in San Marco Square with the Basilica in the background. The good news about waking up so early was that the Plaza was empty!
At noon, we were able to start boarding our cruise. So, we took the water taxi to the terminal and checked in. The Emerald Princess was a beautiful ship! There were approx 3,090 passengers on board with over 950 crew members. We had a balcony stateroom on the Lido Deck (15th floor) and had very convenient access to the pools, spa, and bars. They had a large outdoor movie screen (Movies Under the Stars) where you could watch a movie at 10:30pm on the pool lounge chairs, putt-putt miniature golf course, 5 pools, several pool side bars, Sushi Bar, etc. Very luxurious with a lot of ammenities. Here are some pics for the cruise ship that we took throughout our cruise.
Since we were celebrating our Anniversary, we did the Grand Occasion Package which included a welcome aboard bottle of Don Perignon, matching bathrobes, spa treatments, a formal portrait, champagne breakfast in bed on a morning of our choice, Petit Favors or Canapes each evening... Here we are enjoying our bottle of champagne on our balcony.
Everyone had to be boarded by midnight because we were going to sail from Venice at 0800 the next morning
Day 3 (6 Jun) Let the fun begin!!!
We decided to take advantage of our spa package and arranged for a couple massage in a cabana on deck at sailaway. It was so relaxing!
And, no cruise is complete without the lifeboat drill in our muster station.
There were two formal nights on the cruise, schedule for days at sea. So, our first one was this night. I love getting dressed up...especially since my daily attire consists of combat boots. This was taken in the atrium prior to dinner.
Day 4 (Jun 7) Dubrovnik, Croatia.
Our travel agent, Lee, provided us with Champagne Breakfast in Bed...Which we enjoyed on our balcony.
We did not do an organized tour of Croatia. Rather we explored the city on our own. There are still lots of reminders of the civil war in 1991 (bullet holes in homes) in which Croatia became independent from Yugoslavia. The city is protected by the Ston--one of the largest stone walls in the world. It extends approx 1 1/4 miles around the city center and provided a lot of protection during the bombardment of Bosnia and Serbia. Here are some pics of our trek along the wall.
I find a lot of humor in how people dress...This lady wore a bra with an open back shirt. Interesting in and of itself. But, if you look closer, you can see the price tag still on the shirt haning on the back.... A fashion trend I will stay away from.
And, a trip wouldn't be complete without Aaron finding a unique beer bottle cap to add to his collection.
Day 5 (8 Jun) Corfu
Corfu is a Greek Island between Italy and Albania in the Ionian Sea (western coast of Greece). Aaron and I did separate excursions today. I took Greek cooking lessons at a Greek Restaurant. We learned how to cook Moussaka, Tzatziki, Taramousalata, and Greek Salad. During the lessons, we were able to eat Feta and Olives while enjoying wine. Then, we ate the various dishes. It was a lot of fun. Here is a pic of the group I sat with in the courtyard of the restaurant.
Aaron's tour was the Best of Corfu...He visited the Achilleion Palace, Paleokastritsa (a cliff top village overlooking the Mditerranean--a place he would like to visit again), and the Monastery of the Virgin Mary. You can see how lush the island is. We would like to return for a few days in the future! Here are some pics he took.
Okay, I need a break. I will post more later.
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